Symptoms:

• The only visible symptom of epilepsy is a seizure:
  • The duration of a seizure ranges from a few seconds to several minutes in length.
  • One suffering from a seizure may remain alert, but will most likely lose consciousness, responsiveness, and any recollection of the episode.
  • During a seizure, the victim can fall to the ground and experience a stiffening or a spasm in the head, torso, and limb muscles as if in a state of shock (most common form of epilepsy in children).
  • Seizures can make you stare blankly for a few moments and "wake up" without any knowledge of what occurred.
  • Additional symptoms include eye fluttering, a twitch, a turn of the head, or the presence (or sense) of an odd smell, sound, taste, or visual impediment as reported by the victim - no witnesses will experience either of these last two sensory symptoms as each are apparent only to the victim (most common form of epilepsy in adults).
  • Epileptic seizures occur unexpectedly. However, the sufferer may experience an aura just before, or during, the beginning of the seizure.

Conditions:

• Epilepsy does NOT necessarily have anything to do with mental retardation or illness.
• Studies show that childhood epilepsy are, however, correlated with below-average intelligence and/or physical and mental deficiencies.
• Epilepsy may be caused by damage to the brain, but for the most part causes are unknown.
• "A seizure occurs when a burst of electrical impulses in the brain escape their normal limits. They spread to neighboring areas and create an uncontrolled storm of electrical activity. The electrical impulses can be transmitted to the muscles, causing twitches or convulsions" (WebMD).
• About 30% of epilepsy cases occur in children. The next most effected age group is the elderly.
• Some of the causes include (WebMD):
  • low oxygen during birth
  • head injuries that occur during birth or from accidents during youth or adulthood
  • brain tumors
  • genetic conditions that result in brain injury, such as tuberous sclerosis
  • infections such as meningitis or encephalitis
  • stroke or any other type of damage to the brain
  • abnormal levels of substances such as sodium or blood sugar